Ashby
was brought up that year by the team that signed him, the Phillies.
Ashby, a native of Kansas City, was signed by the club as an amateur
free agent in 1986. He played at the various levels of single-A through 1989, making AA Reading in 1990.

Ashby was first called up to the big club in June, making his debut June 9.
But it was his follow-up performance that had people talking. Ashby
became only the 12th pitcher in the history of the National League to strike out the side on nine pitches.

"I don't quite get it," Baylor told the Associated Press
that first spring. "I'm still waiting for the punch line on this one. I
know he's kind of erratic at times. But his arm is always there. If
he's wild, he's wild throwing 91-92 mph."

The punch line was Ashby went 0-4 with an 8.50 ERA
over 20 appearances that year for the Rockies. The Rockies shipped him
mid-year to the Padres, where Ashby would have his best years.

Ashby went 12-10 for the Padres
in 1995, his first of four years with double-digit wins for the club.
In 1998, he notched a record of 17-9 with a 3.34 ERA, helping the Padres
to its second National League championship.

His appearance in the World Series that year was not as good.
In 2.2 innings, Ashby gave up seven runs, four of them earned as the
Padres got swept. But Ashby made the All Star team that year and the
next.

Then came his decline. He split 2000 between the Phillies and the Braves, going 12-13 with a 4.92 ERA. Then came three years with the Dodgers, including a 3-10, 5.18 ERA campaign in 2003.

Ashby returned to the Padres for two more innings, both scoreless, in 2004, ending his career.